Strainer.



N0. 781,507. PATENTED JAN. 31, 1905. P. EVANS.

i STRAINBR. v .rrLIoATIoN FILED4 JUNBAJQM.

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110.781,'507.- PATENTEDJAN.s1,19o5.

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STRAINER.

APPLICATION FILED JUNE 4, 1904. .f

Q SHEETS-SHEET 2 No. '781,507. PATENTED JAN). 31, -1905. 4 Y v P. EVANS.

, STRAINBR. A u APPLICATION FILED JUNE 4, 1904;.

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' UNITED STATES.

f Patented January 31, 19045.

PATENT OFFICE.

STRAINER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 781,507, dated January 31, 1905.

` Appleman 111811111119 4, 1904. serai No. 211,201.

To alla/71,0711, t may concern.-

Be it known that I, POWELL EVANS, a citizen of the United States, residing in Philadelphia, 1

Pennsylvania, have invented certain Improvements in Strainers, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates particularly to animproved strainer attachment for use in connection with Huid-actuated apparatus-such, for example, as automatically-acting alarm mcchanism employed in connection with sprinklerl or other fire-extinguishing systems.

One object of the invention is to provide an l attachment of the character noted which shall be of such a nature as to prevent possible clogging of the apparatus, thereby increasing the certainty of its action. Y

. It is further desired to provide a strainer attachment which while being so constructed as to render impossible the. lodging of particles of solid material upon its surface shall provide means for trapping such particles andpreventing their continued circulation within the portion of the device into which fluid is first admitted. l

These objects I attain as hereinafter set forth, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, in which-' Figure l is a sectional elevation of a watermotor of the type employed in connection with alarms for fire-extinguishing systems, said motor being provided with my improved strainer attachment. Fig. 2 is a sectional plan view taken on the line 2 2, Fig. 1. 3 is a sectional elevation of a flow-retarding device employed in connection with alarm mechanism for lire-extinguishing systems,

showing two forms of my invention, asapplied thereto.

Figs. 4 and 5 are respectively plan views taken on the lines l 4 and 5 5 Yof Fig..3. Fig. 6 is a sectional elevation of a well-known form of circuit-closer also employed in connection with {ire-extinguishing systems and having my improved strainer attachment applied to it; and Fig. 7 is a sectional plan view on the line 7 7, Fig. 6.

It will be understood that in the design and constructionV of apparatus for use in connection with fire-extinguishing systems itis of the most vital importance that the various pieces of apparatus employed shallbe ready for voperation at all times and shall moreover befof such nature as to remain in operative condition even after the lapse of many years.

' 4In almost every case the safety of lives and valuable property is made to depend on the instantaneous operation of apparatus which may have been idlefor an indeinite period y ing thecertainty of operation of this particu [lar class of apparatus that I have devised my improved strainer attachment, and it willbe understood that' said attachment is not limited in its use to fire-extinguishing apparatus, as

it isconceivable that it could be used with great advantage in connection with other devices operated liquid.

f Referring to Figs. l and 2, A is acasing having an inlet a, an outlet a', and a cap or cover a2, removably bolted in position. Within said casing is a partition a3, dividing it into two chambers, within one of which is rotatably supported the movable element of a water-motor, whose detail construction, not being part of the present invention, will not be described. It may be stated, however, that said element is provided with a number of peripheral vanes or buckets a5, and there is extending through the partition a3 a nozzle c, through which fluid passes from one chamber of the casing A to the other and by which said Huid is directed against said vanes. There is in by or conducting bodies of the present instance a projecting rib a7 upon the partition as and a screen or stramer as extending from the side of the upper chamber of the casing adjacent to the opening cto the top of said rib, there'beinga portion a oil said strainer projecting beyond or overhanging the rib. This strainer extends, as shown in Fig. 2, completely across the casing, so that liquid entering the opening a is compelled to pass through it before it can enter the nozzle c, It will IOO be further noted that the main portion of the strainer is inclined at a relatively small angle to the line of the opening a, so that liquid entering said opening will strike the screen and continually7 wash therefrom any particles of solid matter carried by the fluid which might lodge thereupon. The current of fluid entering the opening e would tend to carry such particles of solid matter off the screen in-to the relatively large space beyond its end, and said end, which overhangs,`as noted, effectually prevents the return of the solid matter to that portion of the screen through which fluid passes to the nozzle ai. The part e therefore acts .as a trap for the retention of solid i bodies in the recess or depression beyond the screen, and, moreover, owing to the fact that said overhanging portion is perforated, the circulating liquid in the casing is permitted to freely pass without carrying with it such pieces of solid material, as might be the case if the overhanging casing were imperforate. Moreover, the expense of constructing the device is reduced to the minimum by the use of this perforated overhanging structure, since the device is most easily made and put together when the strainer and overhanging portion are formed in one piece.

1n the upper portion of the retarding device shown in Fig. 3 and also illustrated in Fig. 5 is seen a similar application of my invention. This device consists of two casings B and (l, held together in any desired manner, of which the larger is provided with an inlet b, and, as in the case of the device shown in Fig. l, there is a partition b separating the main casing into two parts, in the upper of which is a screen b2, inclined to the line of the inlet b. This screen has a portion b3 projecting over the recess formed by an upwardlyprojecting rib or lug b4, upon which the overhanging end of said screen is supported. As in the case first described and as shown in detail in Fig. 3, there is an opening through the partition in which is fixed a tube b5, leading from the space under the screen b2 into the interior of the casing B. Without describing in detail the construction of the casing C, which forms no part of the present invention, it may be stated that this has within it a valve e, normally held to a seat c' by means of a spring c2.' This valve is provided in the present case with an upwardly-projecting stem, as shown, upon which is carried a head c3, having a portion formed to coact with a second valve-seat cf, so that when from any cause the valve is moved downwardly for a suiiicient distance the said head c3 will rest upon said seat. The casing C is formed so that there is a space or chamber below the valve c having an opening c5, whose line is tangent to a circle drawn from the center line of the valve. wWithin the said chamber is a cylindrical screen c, whose surface includes the circle to which the line of the opening ff is tangent.

In Figs. 6 and 7 the same device is shown as applied to a circuit-closer used to actuate an electric alarm when certain linid-actuat'ml apparatus employed in connection with a lireeXtin'guishing system is operated. This device consists of two casings l) and E, connected together and having between them a diaphragm d, with which engages a plunger 0W, equipped with a switch-blade (l2, so placed that under certain conditions of the diaphragm said blade is made to complete an electric circuit between terminals J and d '1. 1Cutering the hollow interior of the casing YIC is a pipe e, the line of which, as in the case of the structure shown in Figs. 3 and 4f, is substantially tangent to the surface of a cylindrical screen e. The interior of this screen communicates with the under side of the daphragm (l and also has opening into it a nozzle e2, having a relatively small opening for the outflow of liquid.

In the two latter cases above described liquid fiowing through the openings er and f1 will strike the cylindrical surface el the screens at an angle, so as to efleetually remove therefrom, as well as prevent the lodgment of, particles of solid matter, although it will be noted that in said two cases there is no chamber, as in the lirst two cases described, for the settlement of any pieces of solid material. It will be noted, however, in Fig. 6 that the inlet to the nozzle e is an appreciable distance above the bottom of the space into which the pipe e opens, so that the natural tendency of pieces of solid material after they have been dislodged from the screen f1 by the incoming liquid is to settle in the lower part of said space.

I claim as my invention-- 1. The combination of a casing, a strainer dividing the same into chambers, of which one has an inlet and the other an outlet, the part of the chamber having the inlet being provided with an overhanging structure extending beyond the strainer and forming a trap, substantially as described.

2. The combination of a c'asinghaving within it a rib, a strainer extending to said rib and dividing the casing into chambers, of which one is provided with an inlet and the other with an outlet, there being a strainer projecting beyond the rib and overhanging within a portion of the inlet-chamber so as to form a trap, substantially as described.

3. The combination of acasinghaving within it an upwardly-extending rib, a strainer dividing the casing into two chambers, said strainer resting upon and extending beyond the top of the rib, there being an inlet to one of the chambers and an outlet to the other, substantially as described.

4. The combination of acasing having with- IIO in it an upwardly-extending rib, and astrainer extending. from said rib toward a side of the casing, there being an inlet enteringthe casing in a line to direct liquidupon thestrainer and at an acute angle thereto, said casing also having an outlet, substantially as described. 5. The combination of a casing havingwithin it a transverse rib, and a strainer extending from a point adjacent to one side of the casing to the riband overhanging the sanne, there .being an outlet to the casing from4 the space under the strainer and an inlet to said casing placed to direct liquid upon the strainer atan acute angle thereto, substantially as d e- Y to direct liquid vuponthe screen at an acute 'angle thereto, with a structureforming sub.

stantiallya continuation of the strainersurface andrelatively distantfrorn the inlet, substantially as described.

7. A casing having an inlet and an outlet .andA a strainer Iinterposed between said inlet and outlet, with a trap beyond one end of said strainer formed by aj structure in conf to keep and retain pieces of solid material failingv toppass through said strainer and falling beyond the same, substantially as ldescribed; l Y Y f v In testimony whereof I have signedvmy name to this specification in the presence of two sub 'scribing witnesses.

POWELLl EVANS.

Witnesses: l

J. C. BIGGERSTAFF,

WALTER W. LAMPsoN.l

tinuation of the strainer-surface and placed `v 

